Celebrate Oktoberfest at Murray’s Brewery

Two specially-brewed festival beers have been developed for the launch of Oktoberfest at Murray’s Brewery this October long-weekend. Throw in live music from Newcastle favourites, Brien McVernon and the Mark Wells Band into the mix and and you’ve got yourself one hell of a party.

The free ‘rocktoberfest’ concerts are a part of Murry’s month long Oktoberfest.

One of the region’s favourite and most fun groups, The Mark Wells Band, headlines festival entertainment, with a huge free concert on Sunday 4 October. Local rocker, Brien McVernon, performs on Saturday 3 October. And there will be live entertainment each weekend across October.

“So break out the lederhosen, start practising your oompah-pahs and celebrate the world’s biggest festival, down under, at Bobs Farm this October. Hope to see you there!” says brewery owner, Murray Howe.

Oktoberfest actually started out as a Royal Wedding in Germany on 12 October 1810 – where a horse race was the big attraction, and not the beer. The festival celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2010, and amazingly, only wars and cholera epidemics have briefly interrupted the yearly beer celebration across the past two centuries.

This year at the original festival in Munich, more than 6 million litres of beer are expected to be consumed. This consumption accounts for about 30% of the entire annual beer production of all the Munich breweries combined. Visitors also eat a staggering 400,000 sausages – or around one sausage for every two seconds during the festivals business hours!

Many people may not know that Oktoberfest is also the name of beer style. “Technically, authentic ‘Oktoberfestbier’ is brewed only by the breweries within the city limits of Munich. All other beers brewed to emulate the original must be labelled Oktoberfest-style beer! Murray’s is also brewing a traditional Oktoberfest beer – or should I say Oktoberfest-style beer, which is smooth, clean, and rather rich, with a depth of malt character,” says Murray’s Head Brewer, Graeme Mahy.

“We’re also launching a German IPA, called “The Kaiser”, which is dry-hopped. Interestingly, our brewing of this beer breaches the Bavarian Purity Law, decreed by Duke William IV. in 1516, which among other things implies that hops must be boiled. But we’re doing it anyway!” Graeme added.

Using a new German grown hop called Hull Melon, Murray’s brewers took a standard malt base and added these hops throughout the brewing process and of course added plenty of dry-hops in the fermenter. The result showcases the flavours and aromas of the Hull Melon being honeydew melon with a touch of strawberry.